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Thursday, January 15, 2015

The Marquis de Sade and Lacoste

Donatien
Alphonse François de Sade was born in Paris on June 2nd 1740.

His most
famous ancestor “Laure de Sade” (1308-1348) is known as the life love of the Poet
Pétrarque. She is also linked to the Sade branch that will establish in Saint
Remy.

He is the
first heir of Jean Baptiste Comte de Sade, Lord of Saumane and Lacoste in Provence. Raised in Paris amongst
royalties he is sent to his uncle, an abbot, from the age of 4 to 10. He spends
his life between the Abbaye of the little village of Ebreuil in Central France
(about 10 miles from where I was myself born) and in the Castle of Saumane in
Provence, Castle which, according to historian, is “more a brothel than a harem”.
The note is set.

Back to
Paris in 1750 he integrates the most famous schools and joins the Army for the
7years war from 1756 to 1763.

In May 1763
he marries Renée Pélagie Cordier de Launay de Montreuil who will stick to him
most of his life despite... In October of the very same year he is arrested for
molesting a pregnant woman and visits the jail of Vincennes. He is out a month
later, his wife’s family probably arranged to get him out in order to avoid the
outrage.

From then
on he will visit many of Paris Jails until he dies on Dec 2nd 1814.
Prison time is the time where he will write most of his novels, not much else
to do! (well I have stories on the side for you).

In 1768 he
is arrested in Lyon in early April. He is released by mid November with the
order to stay in his Castle of Lacoste who was given by his father as a wedding
gift.

A new
scandal arises in 1772 in Marseille and he runs to Italy with his new mistress,
his
wife’s sister.

He’s
eventually arrested again in 1777 by order of his mother in law and will spend
most of rest of life in Jail. He is at the Bastille just before the revolution
but is transferred to Charenton on July 4th, 10 days prior Bastille Day.

Ruined he
has to sell the Chateau de Lacoste in 1796 in order to live.

Altogether
he was in Lacoste :

-For
several months in 1765

-From
1769 to 1772

-For
the summer 1778

Castle of pleasure, the Marquis invested a lot in
Lacoste, building a 120 seats theatre for example.

The Castle
of fame in destroyed in 1792 and stones are reused for other houses. André
Bouër owner from 1952 till 2001 does his best to restore the ruins. But it’s
only in the early 2000 that the Castle is up for its new life when French
designer Pierre Cardin becomes the new lord of the place.